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Posted on Thu, Jan 19, 2012 : 11:23 a.m.

What makes Tom Brady so good? It all started at Michigan

By AnnArbor.com Staff

Tom Brady

Associated Press

Once again, Tom Brady is a hot topic.

He threw six touchdown passes last week in a 45-10 playoff victory against the Denver Broncos, and now the former Michigan quarterback will lead the New England Patriots against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday (3 p.m., CBS). Win, and he's back in the Super Bowl.

A hot topic is Brady's up-and-down times at Michigan and how battling for playing time against Drew Henson prepared him for the rigors of the NFL. From the Detroit News today:

"In a nutshell, his experience at Michigan, fighting through adversity, fighting to overcome all the obstacles that faced him and being successful at Michigan laid the foundation for his success in the NFL," said Scot Loeffler, a graduate assistant while Brady was at Michigan, and one of his closest friends who now is the offensive coordinator at Temple. "He was in a situation he had to fight for his job day in and day out. That's the approach he takes every day when he goes to work. He's the type of player who never thinks he's arrived — I honestly believe that. That's the way he's built, that's the way he's wired. He's a hell of a player. The foundation he has is because of what he went through in Ann Arbor."